Tag: Lagos LG Poll

The Lagos State Chief Judge, Justice Olufunmilayo Atilade, on Friday inaugurated two tribunals to look into the complaints arising from the conduct of last Saturday’s local government election in the state.

While Justice Olateru Olagbegi was named as the chairman of the first tribunal, Mrs. Folashade Adetiba was appointed chairman of the second tribunal.

Members of the first tribunal are: Mrs. Aigbokhavio, Miss Badejo Okunsanya, Mr. Fadeyi and Abdulazeez Jimoh, while members of the second tribunal are: Mrs. D.T. Olatokun, Mr. Paul, Mrs. Olajuwon and Mr. O. Olaibi.

Speaking during the swearing-in at the conference room of the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja, Justice Atilade noted that the local government election held on July 22, 2017 in Lagos State remained inconclusive without providing a platform, as prescribed by the Electoral Act, for aggrieved parties or individuals to seek redress through seamless legal process.

According to the Chief Judge, members of the committee comprise men and women of “proven integrity” who are vast in relevant laws and are sure to deliver on the assignment and give justice accordingly.

She urged the committee members to see their new task as a call to service and to ensure that their oath of office remained their guide.

“I urge you to see this as a call to service and to know that people are watching; all eyes are on you. Your oath of office should remain your guide,” she said

Justice Atilade further urged them to be wary of people, especially family members, schoolmates and church members, who at this time would be calling and sending them text messages looking for favours with regards to their new duties.

“Like Ceasar’s wife, you should be above board. You would be approached by friends, schoolmates, church members, and so on. Please stay away from them,” she said.

She, however, noted that she had no doubt in their collective abilities to dispense justice to all concerned as stipulated in the Local Government Election Tribunal Law 2009.

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Punch Games

•Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, casting his vote at the Ogunmodede Junior and Senior College, during the local government council elections in Epe, Lagos ... on Saturday.
Photo: Odutayo Odusanya

Based on the available records, the electoral officers confirmed to one of our correspondents that voter turnout at the 027 polling booth was below 10 per cent. But for the polling booth 008a, less than five per cent turnout was recorded as of 2.23pm.

One of the electoral officers, who spoke to one of our correspondents on condition of anonymity, said they had sensed some sort of soft threats.

“About two of these ‘area boys’ had asked us to disclose where we live. I don’t know what they want that for. In fact, he told us to behave ourselves,” the officer said.

It was also learnt that 12 persons were arrested by the police for misconduct during the election.

Five of the suspects were said to be fake party agents allegedly caught with incriminating voting materials and taken to the Area F Police Command, Ikeja.

The police, however, did not state where the suspects were arrested, their names and party affiliation.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Olarinde Famous-Cole, confirmed the arrest.

“I have yet to get details of the suspects. They are in our custody,” he added.

A senior police officer also disclosed to one of our correspondents that a traditional ruler was arrested in the Ajangbadi area of Lagos in the build-up to the election.

“The monarch was arrested on Thursday after complaints that he was a threat to the peace of the community, and that he would likely cause problems during the election,” he added.

Shooting in Mushin

One of our correspondents observed that the exercise was conducted under tense atmosphere in Mushin as hoodlums shot continuously to disrupt the poll.

The hoodlums had attempted to snatch ballot boxes in some polling units in the area but for the intervention of policemen in the convoy of the state Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni.

Even though the attempt was foiled, the shooting continued for about 30 minutes while the CP was on the ground.

Voting was brought to an abrupt end at about 1.30pm because of the situation while seven persons, including a lady were arrested in the area.

Many of the residents of Mushin failed to show up at the polling units as a result of the persistent downpour that started early in the morning.

At polling unit 006, Amu, Palm Avenue, in Mushin Local Government, voting started at 10am and the electorate turned out in trickles to vote for their candidates of choice. The exercise was initially peaceful as people cast their votes and immediately left the vicinity.

As the end of the exercise, less than 200 people voted out of 535 registered voters at the polling unit.

Agege calm

Apart from Mushin, the CP also visited Oshodi and Agege, which were identified as flashpoints. There was no crisis in Oshodi and Agege areas as of the time Owoseni was there.

But it was learnt that a ballot box was reportedly snatched at Ilupeju, while ballot papers were thrown into a drainage channel at Kakoare.

Owoseni, while addressing journalists, promised that the police would increase security presence, especially in the black spots to avert post-election violence.

He said, “The election was relatively peaceful. In a process like this, you cannot completely rule out skirmishes in some areas. There were skirmishes, but we rose to the occasion. We are still taking stock of the arrests and at the end of the day, the number will be made known. The law is there for any one find culpable.”

Rain, apathy in Lagos Island

Like in many parts of Lagos, participation in the council election on the Lagos Island was marred by the rainfall which residents said started around 4am on Saturday.

The major parts of the roads were taken over by youths playing football as policemen mounted guards at junctions.

In the Isale Eko area, SUNDAY PUNCH observed a group of hoodlums moving from one polling unit to another and asking residents to vote for a particular party.

The general low turnout was also seen in Ward C2 Unit 008 Ilu Pesi.

As of 11.06am, only 25 voters had cast their votes.

In Ward C unit 018, Ikoyi, LASIEC officials said party agents went out to call the electorate. Just about 10 pieces of ballot papers were seen in the boxes.

In Ward E Unit 032 Falomo, there was no voter in sight.

A LASIEC official said the rain adversely affected the turnout.

He explained that those who came out could not vote because they did not have the Permanent Voter Card.

“People are generally showing apathy due to the economic situation. I also think that the awareness was very poor,” he said.

Out of the 800 registered voters, only 25 showed up as of 11:5am when one of our correspondents visited.

There was little sign of life in the Lekki area as many residents were holed up in their houses due to the downpour.

The voters in Ward A unit 016, Lekki Phase 1, were stranded due to the absence of the accreditation list.

Some of them expressed disappointment at the electoral body, saying they were disenfranchised.

“This is rubbish, I have never seen this kind of a thing,” one of them, Hector Ebolosue, a resident, said.

In Ward E, Unit 13 and 17 Iru/Victoria Island of the 1,469 registered voters, only about nine had been able to vote as of 1pm on Saturday.

Also in Ward A, Unit 13 Lekki Scheme 1 Eti Osa LGA, out of 1,439 registered voters, only five voted as of 1.12pm.

A LASIEC officer said there was low turnout and she was tired.

“The rain and the environment contributed to the low turnout. This is Island, not the mainland. A lot of people are not coming out. If the situation remains like this, we will have no choice but to count those who have voted,” the female officer said.

Flooded mainland

Late arrival of the electoral materials was observed in many polling centres. For instance, on Apapa Road and Oyingbo, Herbert Macaulay, Alagomeji areas in Lagos Mainland, one of our correspondents observed that most presiding officers had yet to set up their polling booths as of 8.15am due to the flood that took over strategic positions in the areas.

Many of them were seen struggling to find another location to mount their stands. Eligible voters and party stalwarts loitered around to await further directives from the LASIEC officials.

According to findings by our correspondents, some of the locations where officers ought to mount polling booths were flooded and they had to find alternative positions.

Speaking to SUNDAY PUNCH, a businesswoman, Mrs. Anna Egwu, who resides in the Oyingbo area of the Lagos Mainland, said that she was no longer keen on casting her vote, having waited for a while.

“I came to my polling unit as early as 7.30am, even though it was raining and to my dismay, the officials weren’t ready. I have since returned to my house because I have better things to do,” she said.

One of the presiding officers at Ward 003, Unit 21, Adeyanju Olorunfunmi, on Apapa Road on the Mainland, noted that in addition to the downpour, the late arrival of voting materials was also a contributory factor to the late take off of the exercise.

However, only 70 out of the 356 registered voters voted at the polling unit. At Ward C, polling unit 22, there were 406 registered voters with only 37 votes cast as of the time of SUNDAY PUNCH’s visit at 1.15 pm.

In the same vein, one of the party agents, Lola Ujah, bemoaned the fact that there was low voter turnout and she had to join her colleagues to ring bells as a signal for voters to come out and vote.

Other respondents corroborated her claims.

At the Alagomeji and Herbert Macaulay axis of Lagos, one of our correspondents also noticed a low turnout of voters as some youths used the opportunity to play the football.

In Agege, low turnout of voters and delay in arrival of electoral materials marred the election.

Roads become football field

Many residents chose to stay indoors while some others were on the streets playing football on the deserted roads or drinking at bars, thereby defying the state government’s ban on movement and commercial activities during the election.

One of such residents who expressed his frustration, Mrs. Janet Ogunwale, lambasted the state electoral body for its conduct of the poll, saying it was poorly organised.

“I don’t think I have ever seen any election that is this bad. At this time (12.30pm), there is no sign of electoral officials or materials. I had planned to vote today, but now, it is not looking like it will be possible. I’m returning home,” she said.

Fear in Oshodi

Residents of Oshodi Local Government Area in the state attributed the low turnout of voters during the poll to the fear of violence.

Several residents told one of our correspondents that violence that preceded previous elections in the area was a reason why many people refused to come out to vote.

“Many people are afraid. They don’t want to be caught up in any form of violence, so they decided to stay away. A few of my friends told me they were not going to come out to vote because of that,” said a resident, Mr. Sola Ahmed, who voted at a polling unit in Ward B, in Oremeji.

Similarly, another voter, who gave her name as Funke, said she took a risk to participate in the exercise.

However, a voter, Adesola Odedokun, said the low turnout was “because the people are not happy with the state and local governments.”

As of 2.25pm, only 60 people out of 631 registered voters had cast their votes in Ward B, Oremeji polling unit; while only 200 out of 997 registered voters had voted in polling unit 10, Ward B, Adeyemi/Arowojobe junction.

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Punch Games

Residents of Oshodi Local Government Area of the Lagos State have attributed the low turnout of voters during the council polls to the fear of violence.

Several residents told our correspondent that incidents of violence that preceded previous elections in the area was a reason why many people refused to come out to vote this time.

“Many people are afraid. They don’t want to be caught up in any form of violence, so they decided to stay away. A few of my friends told me they were not going to come out to vote because of that,” said a resident, Mr. Sola Ahmed, who voted at the polling unit, Ward B, in Oremeji.

Similarly, another voter, who simply gave her name as Funke, said she took a risk to participate in the voting exercise.

She said, “The heavy rains aside, the truth is a lot of people are scared of election violence. A lot of people came out to vote during the last elections that were cancelled, but many did not come out this time because of the killings that occurred prior to this elections.”

However, a voter, Adesola Odedokun, said the low turnout was “because the people were not happy with the state and local governments.”

“Many of my friends said they were not going to vote because their votes won’t count in the larger scheme of things,” noted another voter, Mrs. Anne Akapo.

As at 2.25pm, only 60 people out of 631 registered voters had cast their votes in Ward B, Oremeji polling unit; while only 200 out of 997 registered voters had voted in polling unit 10, Ward B, Adeyemi/Arowojobe junction.

Voting started between 9 am and 10 am in the polling units.

“One cannot read the minds of the people. But I think the low voters’ turnout was because of the heavy downpour,” said a polling officer in Oremeji, Mr Saheed Abolaji.

Despite the rains and the late delivery of voting materials to many polling units across the state, election officials told our correspondent that the voting exercise is expected to have been concluded by 3 pm.

The Chairman of the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission, Justice Ayotunde Phillips, has attributed the delayed take off of the voting process in Saturday’s council polls in some parts of the state to heavy downpour.

Speaking with newsmen while monitoring some polling units in Yaba area of the state, she said the downpour affected the movements of electoral materials.

She appealed to those who were yet to vote on the affected area to exercise patience as the commission was addressing the situation.

The chairman assured that all eligible voters would vote, as materials were being deployed to the affected areas.

Philips said the commission would allow some people to vote beyond the 3 pm deadline if there was the need to do so.

“The delay in the delivery of materials in some areas, hence voting, is caused by the heavy downpour.

“However, we are addressing the situation and we are assuring that everybody in the affected areas will vote.

“Once people have been accredited and are on queue, they will be allowed to vote even after 3pm,” she said.

She expressed satisfaction with the peaceful conduct in most areas.

Phillips said there were few incidences of violence in some areas but said security agents had quelled the situation.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) correspondent who went with the LASIEC boss on the monitoring reports that that the turnout was low in some areas visited.

At polling unit 028,ward G in Yaba, out of the 644 registered voters, only 82 had voted as of 1pm of the visit.

The polling clerk in the unit, Mrs Mosunmola Taiwo, said the downpour contributed to the slow takeoff and low participation.

She, however, expressed hope more people would turn out for the exercise before 3pm deadline.

The situation was however different at polling unit 004 in the same ward as the Presiding Officer, Mr Bishi Usman said the turnout was impressive.

“The exercise is going on fine. People are coming out. I have exhausted the first booklet; I am on the second voting booklet. It is so far, so good,” he said. (NAN)

Some of the voters and party agents, however, said there was no cause of alarm as everyone had conducted themselves peacefully so far.

The All Progressives Congress agent at Unit 048, Mustapha Kamar, and his Peoples Democratic Party counterpart at the unit, Mrs. Chinwe Ezejioha, expressed satisfaction with the voters’ turnout, adding that they were not worried with the absence of security agents.

The Baale of Orisumbare Kingdom in Alimosho LGA, High Chief Akeeb Rauf, also said the community was a peaceful one.

He said, “I have confidence in my people. But I believe the police are coming. It’s a peaceful community.”

The Baale, however, reprimanded some youths, taking advantage of restricted vehicular movement, to play soccer on the road. He warned that he would not intervene if they were arrested by policemen.

Party agents at units 0020, 049, 074 and 075 where there were also no security agents said they were not worried because they considered the election a neighbourhood affair, where everyone is known to everybody.

Punch Games

Downpour which began at 5a.m. in many parts of Lagos State left many areas flooded and affected early commencement of voting in the local government polls in many areas.

The rain, accompanied with thunderstorms, lasted for more than two hours, confining many residents to their apartments early in the day, until it later subsided.

The flooding of the roads compelled road users to drive against traffic in some areas as people rushed to beat the 7a.m. restriction of movement time.

At the Berger end of Lagos-Ibadan expressway, many motorists trying to get out of Lagos, apart from contending with the rain, were caught up in the restriction of movement time which took off at 7.ooa.m, causing a heavy traffic gridlock.

In Badagry, only few voters were at some polling units where security personnel, electoral officers and materials were on ground by 8a.m..

At Polling Units 007, 008 and 009 in Ward A, Badagry Local Government, voters were seen by 8a.m, while at Polling Unit 8 in Ward B, few voters got accredited and began voting by 8.25a.m. .

Only two voters were at Polling Unit 007 in Ward D at 8.30am.

Mrs Verona Chike, the Polling Officer in the unit blamed the low turnout on the downpour.

“I am sure that more voters will come out as soon as the rain stops,” she told NAN.

However, in some areas of Ikotun/ Igando Local Council Development Area, electoral officers and materials had yet to arrive as at 9.30a.m, with only agents of political parties at some poling units visited by then.

In Ward B, Unit 005, on Apapa Road, in Lagos Mainland Local Government Area, electoral officers arrived at 9.25 a.m. shortly after the rain stopped in the area.

In the Alimosho Local Government, NAN correspondent reports that the premises of the Alimosho Local Government Secretariat was a beehive of activities as several commercial buses were being still loaded with electoral materials and officials at 9:30 am.

NAN observed that vehicles carrying the materials escorted by security operatives began filing out of the LG compound which doubles as the LASIEC secretariat at 9:45 am.

Mr Bakare Olagoke, the Electoral Officer of the Alimosho Local Government branch of the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) told NAN that the rain delayed the process.

“We are leaving now. It is heavy rain and only God saved us that the communication mast did not fall on our office or anyone because the rain was too heavy,” he said.

Lagos residents are at the polls to elect chairmen and councillors in the 20 Local Government Areas and 37 Local Council Development Areas of the state.